Old Familiar Faces
by Anistan Summers
Summary: Find out what happens when a boy gets between Meg and Roxanne, and Carl the pet store boy is in this story.


**Old, Familiar Faces**

"I can't believe Chris is your new next door neighbor," Roxanne said, standing in front of a mirror, moving her head from side to side to see how her hair looked.

"I know. My mouth almost hit the ground when his mom told my mom what her occupation was," Meg said, sitting on her bed flipping through the latest issue of Glamour magazine.

"Well, it's not such a bad job," Roxanne coated her lips with the new lipstick she bought, "I mean, what girl wouldn't want thousands of guys fantasizing about them?" She pushed her lips out towards the mirror.

"Roxanne," Meg said in a surprised tone of voice.

"What?" Roxanne plopped down beside Meg.

"Do you mind? I'm trying to study," Patti turned away from her homework.

"It's a weekend," Roxanne pointed out.

"So?" Patti said.

"Goodnight girls," Helen stuck her head in the bedroom door, "try and keep it down, okay?"

"Okay, Mom," Meg said.

"Thanks for letting me spend the night, Mrs. Pryor," Roxanne smiled.

Helen smiled and continued her walk down the hall and into her bedroom.

"So, what's this talk about this costume party?" Jack asked as he slid under the covers.

"Oh honey, it's just a little get together for the dancers of American Bandstand. It's nothing to worry about," Helen opened a book for a little before bedtime reading.

"It better be adult supervised," Jack warned.

"I'm sure it will be," Helen smiled, glancing at Jack and then back to her book.

"Don't forget to stop by the pet store and pick some hamster food up for Will's hamster," Jack reminded Helen.

"I'll have Patti go and get some while I help Meg and Roxanne pick out their costumes. The pet shop is just a few feet away from the new costume shop," Helen assured Jack that Will's hamster would get food one way or the other, no matter who picked it up.

"Mom, why can't someone else get the food?" Patti argued with Helen in the middle of the costume shop the next day.

"I don't want to hear another word," Helen put her foot down. "It'll only take a minute."

"She just doesn't want to run into Carl," Roxanne smiled a devilish smile as she looked through costumes.

Patti threw a nasty look at Roxanne and she took the money from Helen. As Patti walked to the pet store, Roxanne's words about Carl played over and over in her head. The last time she saw Carl was at the swimming pool that summer. Since then, she avoided the pet store as much as possible, and always made up an excuse so she wouldn't have to go.

She wanted to get this over with as soon as possible. So when the welcoming bell on the door rang, she didn't hesitate on going directly to the hamster food isle. Her eyes skimmed the shelf, and she grabbed the brand she needed and rushed to the counter to pay.

"Okay," Patti thought to herself, "You got the food, now just pay for it and get out of here."

Patti sat the box down on the counter and pushed it forward. The clerk behind the desk finished what he was doing and turned around to help Patti.

Her hands trembled as she counted out the exact change. She figured it would be easier to pay the exact amount, that way she wouldn't have to wait for change. But when she looked up, she saw an all too familiar face.

"Well if it isn't Patti Pryor," Carl said sarcastically, "how can I help you?"

Patti's stomached tightened. It was just her luck to run into him at the last second. She was so close to paying and leaving.

"Hi, Carl," Patti wasn't quite sure what to say, or how to act for that matter.

"What brings you to the pet store today? Maybe...you wanna ask me out on another date then stand me up, or oh wait, I know! Maybe your little brother needs a swimming lesson. Or don't tell me, you're out of cedar chips because if you are then that means you guys are using way too much, but ya know, I can always drop a bag off on my way home," Carl said sarcastically.

Patti was shocked. She had never seen this side of Carl before. Obviously he had developed some new characteristics since she last saw him. Her mouth hung slightly open and she had no idea what to say in response to his comments.

Carl glanced down, pulled the box of hamster food towards him, and scanned it.

"That'll be seventy five cents," Carl said as he shoved the box of food in a paper bag.

"I thought it was a dollar, twenty five," Patti handed him the money.

"It was on sale," Carl rapidly wrote out a receipt and threw it in the bag. "Have a nice day."

Carl picked up his brown clipboard and got back to what he was doing before Patti came in. At least now he knew that his day couldn't get any worse.

"Okay, one more time," Patti said to Chris, "how does your American dream compare to your parent's American dream?"

"You're still here?" Roxanne said as she came through the back door.

"I am, as a matter of fact," Chris smiled as his eyes scrolled up and down Roxanne's figure.

His attention was now directed across the room, and the essay he was supposed to be helping Patti cheat on was the least of his concerns.

"Say...Roxanne," Chris got up from the kitchen table and smoothly walked towards her, "Are you wearing your hair different?"

"Um, well," Roxanne felt her knees becoming weak as he came closer. "I parted it differently this morning."

"Hm," Chris now stood directly in front of her. His hand extended and touched her cheek. His eyes glided down, then back up, "It looks good."

All she could do was smile back at him. When she opened her mouth in order to say thanks, a squeak was the only sound that came out.

Chris smiled and rubbed her cheek with the knuckle on his forefinger, "You're welcome."

He slowly pulled his hand back to himself and he started to leave. Before he closed the back door behind him, he turned back and looked at her.

"So," His voice was soft and suave, "How about you and I um...go get a bite to eat after school tomorrow?'

Roxanne smiled and accepted his invitation.

"Good," Chris smiled a half smile, "I'll be waiting for you out front."

"O-okay," Roxanne said, sounding like a silly little school girl.

"We have a new student joining us today class," the sister informed everyone the next morning.

Standing in the doorway was a boy with thick black hair and beautiful topaz eyes. He seemed shy and he inched forward.

"This is Carl Sherwood everyone," the sister introduced him to the class," you can take that empty seat in the back, there next to Mr. Pierce."

Meg recognized him and knew he had missed out a lot on the chapter they were studying, so she approached Carl after class.

"Hi," she smiled.

He smiled slightly as he gathered his books, "hello."

"I don't know if you recognize me, but I'm Meg Pryor, Patti's big sister," Meg introduced herself.

"Oh," Carl heard the name that he disliked the most, "Hi." He told himself that this was a completely different person and that he should try his best to be nice.

"I thought maybe if you wanted to, we could study tonight. I mean, I noticed that you've missed a lot and I just thought I could help," Meg smiled.

Carl could tell by her tone of voice and smile that she was completely different from Patti. Meg was sweet, considerate, and kind. And because of that, Carl couldn't refuse her offer. After all, he did have a lot of catching up to do. His mother decided to transfer him, and due to his grades, the school bumped Carl up to a senior level of Chemistry.

"Sure," Carl's eyes lit up. "I don't have to work today, so we could even start right after school if you want."

Carl could've kicked himself for what he had just said. It must have sounded so dorky. A beautiful, sweet girl was talking to him and all he could say was something that had to do with studying – starting to study as soon as possible.

"Okay," Meg agreed, "And if you want, you can just stay for dinner."

"Oh," Carl said, "Well, I don't to be an inconvenience."

"No, it's okay," Meg assured.

After school Roxanne jumped on the back of Chris's motorcycle and they drove to a small, cozy diner. Instead of burgers, they both decided to share a chocolate milkshake.

"So, tell me, how are you and Meg such good friends? I mean, you're the total opposite. You're more adventurous, exciting, you live on the edge, take risks. Meg's always being careful, and not getting in trouble, always doing the right thing." Chris asked.

"Well, you do know that she got arrested, right?" Roxanne said.

"Meg? Arrested?" Chris cackled. "She's such a goody two shoes, what for?"

"Well, she protested against the war," Roxanne began to sip the semi-thick shake through one straw.

Chris was impressed with the fact that Meg had actually done something that got her arrested, even though he always liked the good-girl type. He loved corrupting their innocence even more.

J.J lay awake in his bed while the others slept soundly. He had just finished reading Beth's letter by moonlight for the tenth time that night. With it being quiet, it gave him a lot of time to think at night before he went to sleep. Part of him wanted to leave right away and go home and marry her- not just because it would be the right thing to do, but because he wanted to. Ever since they had the fight and broke it off, he still wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. In one hand, he held the smooth piece of jade that the nurse had given to him right before he left the hospital, and in the other he held Beth's letter. As he drifted off to sleep he juggled the two choices in his head – stay here and fight, or go home and sweep Beth off her feet, and beg her to come back to him.

Things at the Pryor dinner table were hectic as usual. Shelly had brought desert, and this time it wasn't a bottle of wine, or vodka or any other alcoholic beverage.

"So, Meg," Shelly finished a bite of the cherry pie she had brought, "Tell me more about this play that you're directing."

"Um," Meg glanced around the table, "Well it's called Henry the Fifth, and—"

"Meg actually thinks that it's going to change people's minds about the war," Patti said sarcastically.

"I do not," Meg defended, "I mean I don't expect it to change their minds completely."

"It's a waste of time," Patti assured Shelly.

"No it isn't," Will snapped, sticking up for his big sister Meg.

"I just want people to become more aware of what's going on over there," Meg explained.

"She neglected to mention that no one wants to participate in it," Patti filled in the blanks.

"Yes they do," Roxanne jumped in.

"Maybe we should talk about something else," Helen suggested.

"I don't see you doing anything useful, Patti, especially to do with the war. Do you want J.J to die or come home safe and sound?" Meg snapped.

"Okay," Jack slammed down his fist, "That is enough."

"Excuse me," Meg said quietly as she got up from the table and exited the room.

After Meg left, everyone at the table went their own way. Helen went upstairs with Roxanne to talk to Meg. Will went to his room to finish up some homework, while Patti and Chris went into the living room to work on their American dream essays. Jack took the responsibility to was the dishes, which is something that he didn't do often. But he knew that Meg was upset, seeing as though the play was something she really cared about, and that Helen would be comforting her for a while.

Shelly took advantage of this opportunity. She had seen men like Jack before, and knew what it took to make them happy. She sat the last saucer down on the sink and stood next to Jack.

"I'm sorry about dinner Jack," she pretended to apologize. "I never meant to start an argument."

"It wasn't your fault," Jack said, "Patti just doesn't understand how Meg feels about the war, and so...." He rinsed off the last saucer and dried it off.

Shelly put her hands on Jack's shoulders, making him jump. Her fingers tightened and she began to rub his shoulders.

"Gosh, Jack," she said in a seductive voice, "You're so tense."

"Well--," he started to say.

"I bet Helen never rubs your shoulders like this," Shelly moved. "You know, if you were with me, you would be treated like a king."

Around the corner Helen stood. She started to walk into the kitchen when she saw Shelly put her hands on Jack's shoulders. Helen stood where she couldn't be seen; she wasn't sure what to do.

"Look," Jack shrugged his shoulders, pushing Shelly's hands off., "I have a wife that I love very much and—"

"I see how Helen treats you," Shelly moved her face closer to his. "She doesn't appreciate you, doesn't understand you Jack. She doesn't love you the way I could."

"Now wait a minute!" Jack was interrupted by the firm warmth of Shelly's lips against his.

"Okay," Helen stepped in, "That's enough,"

Helen made it clear that Shelly was to not set foot inside their home again. As for Chris, he had done nothing wrong and that they would continue to feed him dinner. Helen and Jack decided that it would be better if the kids didn't know about what happened.

"So have you thought about your costume?" Roxanne asked Monday morning at Meg's locker.

"I have something in mind," Meg smiled, as though she were hiding something.

"Thanks for helping on my costume Mrs. Pierce," Roxanne said, later that afternoon, standing in the living room of the Pierce household.

Shelly had agreed to help Roxanne with her costume on her days off.

"Oh, no problem, honey," Shelly said, clearing off the coffee table.

"Hey, Rox," Chris said as he walked through the front door.

"Oh, hey," she smiled.

"You still wanna see that movie tonight?" Chris winked at her.

"Um, sure," Roxanne smiled.

Roxanne and Chris had been seeing a lot of each other over the past two weeks. They even done things that couples would do like hold hands or kiss. But she wasn't the only girl that he was seeing. Between dates with Roxanne he was dating Meg and another girl from East Catholic.

Roxanne didn't tell Meg about seeing Chris because she knew Meg thought he was a jerk. But when they were together, Chris made Roxanne feel special. Even more so then what she did with Luke.

Meg didn't tell Roxanne because she didn't want to look like a hypocrite. But there was something about being with a bad boy that felt so right. It was only a matter of time before they both found out what was going on.

"So, who are you bringing as your guest?" Roxanne spoke loudly to Meg.

"I don't know yet," Meg swayed back and forth rapidly, clapping her hands.

"I'm surprised they're letting us bring someone," Roxanne said, swaying in her seat.

"Those are the notes for section one, chapter five," Meg handed a notebook to Carl on his way out after dinner. This was the fourth time he had been over for dinner and to study with Meg. "It's everything you and I went over."

"Okay," Carl smiled, "Thanks for dinner, Mrs. Pryor!" Carl shouted.

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow then," Meg said.

"I guess so. Well goodnight," Carl turned and took a few steps, then turned back to face Meg. "Meg, I was um wondering, do you want to see a movie tomorrow after school?"

Meg was surprised at Carl's asking her to see a movie. But she knew that she and Chris didn't have anything planned and she thought Carl was sweet, and so she agreed.

That night Carl lay wide awake in his room. He was so excited about seeing a movie with Meg. She was so much more mature than Patti, but maybe that's because she was a little older than Patti. Carl thanked God for his intelligence, and for being able to skip to a higher level of chemistry.

The next day after school, Roxanne stood in line at the movie cinema's concession stand while Chris stood in line for tickets. Little did he know, in a few moments, trouble was coming his way. Meg and Carl arrived at the same cinema, and like Roxanne, and Chris, Meg went to the concession stand while Carl waited for the tickets.

Chris glanced behind him, just missing Meg. He saw Carl and realized he was from school, and in order to be friendly, Chris struck up a conversation, not having any idea of who Carl was there with.

Meg got in line and noticed that the girl in front of her looked familiar.

"Rox?" Meg asked.

Roxanne turned around to find Meg standing behind her, and inside she began to worry but she kept her cool.

"Meg, hey." She smiled, "What are you doing here?"

"I'm seeing a movie with Carl," Meg explained, "What about you?"

"Uh, well,--" Roxanne tried to sound very casual and calm, but was interrupted.

"Hey Meg," Chris came up and put his arm around Roxanne.

"Chris," Meg's eyes lowered, "What's going on?"

"I'm here with Roxanne," Chris smiled.

During the movie, Roxanne and Meg kept eyeing each other. And when the movie was over, not a word was said as they all left.

"We need to talk," Roxanne said standing outside of Meg's front door later that night.

Meg swallowed her pride and let Roxanne come in. They both told each other about what had been going on and why they didn't tell each other about seeing Chris.

The night of the costume party for the American Bandstand, Meg and Roxanne put on their costumes and both went to Chris's house. When he answered the door, he was dressed in a costume, ready to go, assuming that one of the girls would take him. But he was surprised to find both Meg and Roxanne standing on the other side of the door.

"Hi, Chris," Roxanne smiled.

"Wow," Chris's eyes scanned Roxanne. Her playboy bunny costume made her even more irresistible, "So which one of you is taking me as your guest?"

Roxanne and Meg glanced at one another, smiled, and then looked back at Chris.

"Well, see Chris," Meg explained, "we've talked, and we realized that you liked us both and by lying to us, you were just trying not to hurt our feelings, which was sweet of you."

"Yeah," Roxanne smiled and agreed with Meg with her hand now on her hip, "sweet."

"So," Meg moved closer to him, "Rox and I have come up with a resolution for this mess about you seeing me, and then you seeing her and all."

"A plan?" Chris was confused. He figured they would be furious with each other, and they would never talk again and that he could continue seeing both of them at the same time.

"Yeah, a resolution," Roxanne said, "See....you can stay at home...by yourself, and relax, seeing as though you must be worn out from sneaking around so much, and well Meg and I will not inconvenience you anymore. Neither one of us is going to date you, and we're going to the party with Carl."

Meg waved, "Bye."

Roxanne and Meg turned and walked away, laughing with their one arm around each other. They met Carl at the party.

Meg made a statement with her costume of Henry the Fifth, and Roxanne turned heads with her playboy bunny costume. And well, Chris had a girl-less night at home, alone. But unlike Chris, Carl was lucky, and got to dance the night away with both Meg and Roxanne.


End file.
